Growing Up
by xXHamHamLoverXx
Summary: Kizuna and Remon are college students. They haven't seen each other in a while. Suddenly, Chikaru proposes a meet-up for them. And their life just gets even more complicated as the two Lulim girls figure out how they really feel about each other.
1. Filler Chapter

This is a _**filler page**_. I've seen other people do this, so I thought I should too, it seems like a good idea.

In no way am I affiliated with Strawberry Panic, besides writing fan fictions about it.

This story is entitled:

_**Growing Up, A Kizuna/Remon fan fiction.**_

I don't think anyone has made a Kizuna/Remon fanfic yet, so I am happy to say that I am the first one. Let's see how this turns out...

_If you are still interested, please turn to chapter 1..._


	2. Recaps and Reunions

Welcome to my third Strawberry Panic fan fiction, Growing Up. I've decided to focus on two of my favorite characters, Kizuna Hyuuga and Remon Natsume. I never have much to say in my introductions, for those of you who know me and my other story, "How to Fully Enjoy Summer Nights", which was recently completed. Now I need something else to spend my time with, rofl. So, here is my newly adapted fan fiction.

**Disclaimer:** Crap, I get tired doing this after a while. But hey, it has to be done. I don't own Strawberry Panic, or else...I don't know. Kaname would be ruling the world as...Darth Vader. DUN DUN DUN!

* * *

**Chapter 1: Recaps and Reunions**

_Oh, Remon._

_I haven't seen you so long. How long has it been...like five years? No, I'm just kidding. We haven't seen each other since we graduated. I know, we text each other like...a lot, but it isn't the same as actually seeing you. I mean, you're one of my best friends, but how are we going to stay friends if we don't even see each other? Think about it; before we graduated, we were together all the time. We were roommates, partners-in-crime...basically everything. Nothing brought us down. But now graduation ends, and we suddenly stop seeing each other?_

_No way, sister._

_So, we absolutely have to make plans...sometimes soon. My heart simply aches for you...psh. Yeah right. That sounded all lovey-dovey, didn't it? But seriously, Rem, I want to see you. So badly. And I don't know why. I guess what I'm really trying to say is..._

_Fuck it. I miss you._

Kizuna crumpled up the piece of lined paper she was writing on and threw it in the trash can...again. Her trash was practically overflowing with crumpled and ripped-up paper. She sat in a slightly-more-than-dingy apartment room, at her desk. She wanted to write to Remon, but she couldn't do it without sounding overly affectionate. She melancholically lay her head on the desk, feeling the cold metal against her cheek, remembering that day when they first met...

_She was sitting quietly in the back corner of the huge room, waiting to be told what to do. That shy girl with the green hair and glasses. Despite her determination to be invisible, the other kids noticed quite quickly and whispered, giggled and smirked at her. Kizuna was among them...well, not joining in, but smiling all the same. Wanting to be part of something. But she realized that wasn't what she wanted, and when the kids broke off into their little group in front of the huge room, Kizuna walked over to the quiet little girl, who was playing with her fingers and looking totally lost._

_"Er...hi there!" Kizuna said, smiling brightly. If anything could win this girl over, it was her signature smile._

_The girl tried to smile back, Kizuna could tell. But she was too homesick and depressesd...or at least that was what she thought. The girl looked at her through her gold-rimmed glasses._

_"Hi."_

_"So, what's your name?"_

_"Remon Natsume."_

_"Remon Natsume," Kizuna repeated. "I'll remember that. I'm Kizuna Hyuuga. Learn it, memorize it. Got it?"_

_The girl said nothing._

_Kizuna was a bit frustrated. Couldn't she say something other than nothing? She sighed exasperatedly and sat down next to Remon, watching her._

_"New here?" _

_The girl nodded._

_"I see."_

_More silence, more staring. After a while, the girls were given their dorm assignments. To Kizuna's surprise, she was rooming with Remon. Remon looked at Kizuna, watched her as though x-raying her, and smiled. Kizuna had never appreciated seeing a person's smile as much as she had just then._

_"So...are we heading to our dorm?" she asked, in a soft, uncertain voice._

_"You bet we are! Let's get outta here!" Kizuna said, thrusting a fist in the air, and a giggling Remon followed her. _

That had been seven years ago. Seven years seemed like such a long time to others, but to Kizuna, it seemed just like yesterday. She and Remon had become best friends within a week, maybe less, she couldn't remember. A few weeks into their first year, they met Chikaru, who became like their sensei, guiding them through school and studies. And, of course, they found their calling...the Lulim Transformation Club. Or any club you could think of, really. They did random things at random times...and it was always a blast. But those times were over, now they had to focus on growing up.

"What a bitch," Kizuna said to herself, scratching the back of her head. Aside from her studies, Kizuna had many things on her mind, most of which included Remon and the rest of her friends she had left behind. While drifting off into her thoughts, her cellphone started vibrating, and she snatched it and opened it. It was from Remon, of course. She was, besides Kagome, Chikaru and some of their other friends, the only one she talked to on her cellphone.

_Kizuna, Chikaru wants us to get together tomorrow afternoon. Are you down?_

_Depends. Are you down as well?_

_Very funny, Kizuna._

_I'll always go down for you, babe._

Kizuna smirked a bit. She and Remon always had such a crude sense of humor. She left her cellphone perched on her desk and eagerly wated for tomorrow to come, just thinking.

--

Kizuna, Chikaru and Shion were at the train station the following day, sitting on a bench and waiting for the next train to appear. Since there were two drop-off areas for the incoming passengers, Kizuna kept turning around in her seat, alterning her views from one to the other. She heard Chikaru giggle, and Shion took her arm and Chikaru lay her head gently onto her. Kizuna's mental ego twitched and writhed at the sight of them, and she quickly turned away. This never used to bother her, she'd seen Chikaru and Shion do way more than that before. So why was it bothering her now?

Perhaps it was the fact that she longed to do that kind of thing with Remon. They had playfully touched and leaned on each other before, when they were younger, but it had been nothing above friendly. They hadn't loved each other then. But now, seeing Remon had a whole new meaning in her mind. It was a bit scary, too.

Kizuna's ears were suddenly filled with light kissing sounds, and she closed her eyes, agitated. "Do you mind?" she snapped softly, looking to Chikaru and Shion. They guiltily broke apart and smiled sheepishly at each other.

"Sorry about that," Chikaru said, scratching the back of her head. "I couldn't control myself, I guess." And then Chikaru seemed to notice Kizuna's frustrated look, and her eyes changed to a look of sympathy and understanding. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Kizuna said, perhaps a bit too quickly. She closed her eyes and ironed her face with her hands, staring into the cold darkness of her eyelids. Sometimes she wished she would just disappear into that darkness...that soothing, cold darkness. It would be a better place...a place where you wouldn't feel pain, where you could feel calm and serene and happy. But Kizuna knew that, until she died, there would never be a place like that.

"Bullshit," Chikaru said firmly, crossing her arms and looking at Kizuna. It was like she was x-raying her, trying to figure out what was going on. And Kizuna felt her determination for silence slowly slipping away from her. She swung her legs back and forth on the bench and sighed.

"I was thinking about Remon..." she said quietly. Shion wasn't paying attention, she was keeping a lookout for Remon.

Chikaru nodded. "Ah," she said, and didn't say anymore. It was as though she knew the situation now, that by Kizuna's simple words, she was able to piece together her feelings like a puzzle.

It was a few minutes before Remon actually arrived at the train station. She stood there, in a professional-looking school uniform, holding a suitcase and her travel bag with her clothes. But Kizuna was too busy looking in every direction to notice that she was there.

"I still don't see her!" Kizuna said, pouting a bit. She heard some shuffling of feet behind her, but payed it no attention...until a pair of arms wrapped around her waist. She started, flinching a bit, and whirled around to see Remon's face right in front of her's. She smiled widely and jumped into her dear friend's arms. Remon looked a bit taken aback, but smiled all the same.

"Kizuna-chan, leggo of me!" she said with difficulty, trying to get Kizuna off of her. Kizuna was pretty much latched onto her for the time being. "Seriously, it's like we haven't seen each other in years or something!"

"It feels that way, my darling," Kizuna said, smiling widely and finally letting go of Remon. "I've missed you."

"We only just texted each other all day yesterday. But I've missed you too," Remon said, smiling. Kizuna smiled back, and the world seemed to go in reverse. It reminded Kizuna of each year they had come back to Astrea Hill from summer vacation, when they had used to make a big deal out of returning to see each other. When they were younger, they would probably be swinging each other around and making a lot of noise. But they were college students, barely nineteen, and they couldn't be seen doing such childish things.

A few hours later, the four girls settled down at a nearby beach area, eating ice-cream cones and catching up with each other. Kizuna and Remon were sitting slightly away from Chikaru and Shion, seeing as they had engaged in their "intimate relationship" activities. They looked nervously at each other for a moment, then Kizuna spoke.

"So...how's college?" Kizuna asked, playing with her sleeve collar. _I look like a bumbling idiot,_ Kizuna thought to herself, mentally rolling her eyes. _Are we really that uncomfortable around each other now? It hasn't even been two years since we saw each other._

"Well," Remon started, "my college has most of the classes I need to take for the profession I'm going into. And I'm getting tutoring from Momomi and Kaname..."

"SAY WHAT?!"

"Yep," Remon said, shaking her head at Kizuna's reaction and smirking. "They're tutoring me in things like English and Marketing. And International Trade, of course. And they also teach me Kendo."

"They're like your senseis now," Kizuna said, laying back on the sand. Remon being taught by Momomi and Kaname, who were the scheming queens of Japan, could not be a good thing. She and Remon had been very mischeivous in their high school days, but they had never done anything illegal. They just did little petty things that almost got them in trouble, but were still fun. It dawned on Kizuna that Momomi and Kaname might recruit her to be like them one day. Oh well, it was better than sitting around doing nothing.

After a while, the girls left the beach in search of something to do. Night was falling and many street lamps and indoor lights could be clearly seen. Tokyo was finally starting to settle down.

"So what are we doing now, Chikaru?" Remon asked as she walked side-by-side with Kizuna.

"You packed clothes, didn't you? I was thinking of having a sleepover at my house!" Chikaru said cheerfully. Kizuna and Remon cheered, and Shion looked slightly annoyed. With that plan in mind, the four of them went out to dinner and then made their way to Chikaru's house, taking animatedly to one another.

"You two can sleep in the guest room. We only have one," Chikaru said, "but I'm sure you two will be comfortable sharing a bed, right?"

"Hai!" Remon and Kizuna said, and Kizuna mentally smiled and squealed. It had been a long time since they shared a bed. Even though she shouldn't really exited about sleeping with Remon, she was. And she knew exactly why.

They stripped out of their clothes until they were wearing nothing but their undergarmets(Kizuna's face turned puce when Remon started slipping on her pajamas), and scrambled into bed. They lay there, simply silent for a few long minutes, and Kizuna finally sighed.

"Remon?" she said softly, her eyes still closed and yawning.

"Hai?" Remon's voice replied, squirming around and moving so she could face Kizuna.

"Did you miss me when you went to college?"

There was a bit of a stunned slience, in which Kizuna felt Remon flinch, and could almost feel her body heat growing warmer, emitting from her face. "O-of course I did..." Remon said softly into her hear. "I thought about you a lot..."

"Every day?" Kizuna asked, finally opening her eyes to look at Remon. Remon blushed and looked away.

"M-maybe not...but I did think of you most days. A couple of days after I started college for the first time, I was alone. And so I didn't have any friends, like back on my first day at Astrea Hill. And I thought about that day, and thought about how kind you were when we first met. I felt better after that."

Kizuna smiled a bit. Her mind, body and spirit seemed to be at ease, and she dozed off to sleep. Right before she fell into her dreamless trance, she felt Remon's arms slip around her. Or someone's arms, at least. And Kizuna knew she was safe from any sort of harm.

* * *

End. Sorry it's short. It'll start getting more interesting in the next chapter. 


	3. Romantic Intentions

Again, nothing to say here. I'm not going to put disclaimers on my chapters anymore because everyone who reads my fan fics knows that I'm not about to claim ownership of anything. Except my computer. And my vol. 1 of the StroPani manga, which I love to death. It's all smooth and it's got that "new book" smell...Anyways, on with the fic.

**Chapter 2: Romantic Intentions**

Kizuna, Chikaru and Shion were already up and walking through the house like zombies, waiting for Remon to wake up. The green-haired girl waddled down the stairs, yawning to get their attention, rubbing her eyes and tugging at one of the sleeves of her blue-and-white striped pajamas.

Kizuna automatically turned around, and grinned. "What's the story, morning glory?" she said cheerfully, walking over to her and clapping her on the shoulder. "Woke up kinda late, huh?"

"Eeeeeh..." Remon said groggily, walking monotonously toward one of the couches residing in the living room, sprawling down on one.

"Listen," Kizuna said, throwing herself on the foot of the couch. "We're meeting up with Tsubomi, Yaya, Kagome and Chiyo later to go to the amusement park. So wake up, okay?"

"Whadifidunwannago...?" Remon said in one breath, barely audible. But Kizuna knew the girl too well not to be able to understand her, and she grinned and stood up, disappearing into the kitchen.

"We'll drag you," she simply said. Kizuna grinned again, she had been doing that a lot lately, and watched as Remon fell to sleep again, clutching the arm of the couch. 

_If she was going to go back to sleep, why did she get out of bed...?_ Kizuna asked herself as she made a cup of water, shaking her head. She knew the answer, of course. People who were usually tired slept wherever they could, even if they had just woken up. However, Kizuna was going to make sure that Remon was awake and ready for their "quad-date", as she phrased it.

Kizuna took the cup of chilled water towards Remon, watched her for a moment, and dumped it on her head. She fell on the ground giggling at Remon's reaction, which was an immediate spring from the couch and a very loud screech. This led to much wrestling and struggling on the floor, starting in the living room and eventually ending up in the hallway, where Kizuna had Remon fixed to the wall by her stomach with her knee.

"Say it," Kizuna said.

  
"No!"

"Say it..."

"NO!"

"Remon," Kizuna said calmly, pressing very hard on the bone of Remon's wrist, so she cried out in slight pain. "Don't make me..."

Remon sighed and finally gave in. "Fine. Uncle."

"Good," Kizuna said, smirking evilly and letting Remon go. They were treated to eggs and bacon, cooked by Shion and Chikaru, and a few hours later the four of them were heading off to the designated meeting place for the amusement park. Remon stood within a safe distance of Kizuna, to avoid more banter, but Kizuna kept pulling her back towards her, smirking, and Remon sighed. She just had to give in to that girl.

Kagome and Chiyo were the first to meet them. They were arm-and-arm, expectedly, and they smiled as the four other girls approached them.

"Hey," most of them said in unison, and Kizuna smirked.

"Kagome-chan, not carrying around Pashibaru, eh?"

Kagome shook her head. "Nah, I suppose not. Pashibaru is back at home sleeping. I don't need to carry him around anymore, but I still have him, ne. Chiyo-sama takes good care of him."

Chiyo grinned at her, patting her head as Kagome scrunched her nose, and looked around. "Where are Yaya-oneesama and Tsubomi-chan?"

"They're probably going to have some sort of dramatic entrance," Remon said, shaking her head. "Those two are such a flamboyant couple."

"You're telling me," Shion said, rolling her eyes. "Remember when Yaya-san came to pick up Tsubomi from her job in a moped?"

"Oh yeah, I remember that!" Chiyo said as she played with strands of Kagome's hair absentmindedly, as the blonde girl sat down on a nearby bench.

"The thing that impresses me is that Yaya-chan gets Tsubomi-chan to play along with her hyper antics," Chikaru said, as she took a seat next to Kagome.

Shion shrugged. "Tsubomi-chan's infatuated with Yaya-chan at the moment," she said, rolling her eyes again. "They're in love, it's expected."

Kizuna and Remon looked at each other for a slight, awkward moment, and they turned away from each other right afterwards. The rest of the girls could sense the awkward-ness of their current relationship, and even though none of them looked at each other, they mentally sent each other notes to meet up and discuss the matter.

Yaya and Tsubomi showed up fifteen minutes later. Though the entrance wasn't too dramatic, it was highly amusing nonetheless. Tsubomi came up riding her scooter, waving as she balanced it with one hand. The others waved back, and at that moment, Yaya had lost control of her skateboard and had tripped over a nearby recycle bin. Most of the girls laughed, but Tsubomi shook her head and complained about how embarrassing Yaya was. Yaya only grinned at her as she got up from the ground, brushing herself off.

"Yo! What's up, everyone?" she said cheerfully, giving everyone double high-fives with both her hands. Everyone greeted her happily and they headed off to the amusement park.

Yaya continued to be the life of the group, noticing when a long period of awkward silence was going to come up, and diminishing it quickly by telling a joke or some embarrassing story about Tsubomi.

"I mean, really, who keeps their scooter since they've been in elementary school? How childish can you get?" Yaya said, smirking at Tsubomi, who was scowling at her.

"It _happens_ to be the only one that I own, and I don't want to go out and buy a new one," Tsubomi said snobbishly.

"Oh, boo hoo," Yaya said sarcastically. "Just tell me to get one for ya."

"Isn't that called 'mooching'?" Tsubomi asked, an eyebrow raised.

"No," Yaya said, grinning. "It's called being a girlfriend."

  
A chours of "Aww"'s sounded and Tsubomi flushed lightly, dropping the subject. Yaya grinned victoriously and ruffled up Tsubomi's hair as she started mindless conversation with the other women. Kizuna and Remon decided to hang back, watching the group socialize. They wanted a bit of alone time with each other, which was good for them. They smiled at each other, yet seldom said a word. It was only when Kizuna broke the silence did either girl speak.

"So," Kizuna said, smiling at Remon, who was absentmindedly playing with her shirt collar. "The amusement park should be fun, right?"

"Yeah," Remon replied automatically, still not making eye contact. Kizuna sighed, and she was reminded of that first day of school back in first year. They hadn't talked at all, but they were together and that was what mattered.

So Kizuna did not push Remon any farther into a conversation. She gently placed an arm around her shoulders, and Remon pressed against her gently. Kizuna was highly surprised that none of their group was listening into their...well...not exactly "conversation", but their antics. Kizuna smiled and gently played with some of Remon's hair, as they entered the gate to the amusement park.

--

The amusement park was eventful enough. There were things happening all around them, fast-paced and exited. They went on all of their rides during the first half of the day, the rest was spent eating food. Tsubomi had successfully obtained herself a very large Spongebob drinking cup, including some sort of blue juice product and a very large twisty straw.

However, the thing that grabbed the girls' attentions was the cosplay room. There were many different costumes for people to try on and buy, if they wanted to. And so, delving into their famous pastime, Remon and Kizuna took full hold of the room.

"Look, Remon-chan, I'm the Terminator," Kizuna said, and she grinned as she dawned a black suit with dark glasses, lowering them so that her eyes showed secretively. "'I'll be back'."

Remon giggled and Kizuna beamed proudly. Suddenly Remon placed a pirate hat on and grinned at Kizuna. "You're forgetting one thing, lad...Captain Jack Sparrow!"

Kizuna laughed a bit. "Jack Sparrow, be it known that..."

Remon cut her off. "Captain. _Captain_ Jack Sparrow."

Kizuna held her hands up in front of her protectively. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Captain Jack Sparrow. Shall ye accompany this squabbie into the vast lands of the amusement park?"

Remon smiled and locked arms with Kizuna. "Aye."

They left the group without detection. It was easy to do, since the six other girls were preoccupied in other things. They wouldn't miss them at all. Arm and arm, they explored the rest of the amusement park alone, pointing at things, laughing, winning prizes and having a good time together. It was all either of them could ask for.

--

The day winded down with dinner. Kizuna and Remon met up with their friends at a small Italian restaurant on one of the corners of the street that the amusement park was on. Expectantly, they all carried an assortment of prizes, little toys and souvenirs. This must have happened often, because none of the staff int he restaurant said anything about it. Kizuna and Remon both held jumbo-hammers, plastic katanas and pirate hats. Tsubomi seemed content with the Spongebob cup and the huge teddy bear that Yaya had won for her, and Yaya was busy playing around with the model airplane that Tsubomi had won for her. Kagome had a noise maker that spun around and made lots of disrupting noise, and Chiyo had a huge carton of onigiri, bottles of sake and packages of green tea. The other people in the restaurant looked exceptionally impressed with their nerve.

Kizuna and Remon sat at a booth alone, not too far from the rest of their friends. They looked at each other and smiled tentatively, the air slightly tense.

"Well, today was fun," Remon said, playing with her fork on the table. Kizuna nodded, adjusting her pirate hat.

"Yeah, it was awesome," she said. "It's good that we were able to do something like this again, after so long..."

  
They both paused, looked at each other for a quick second, then went back to nervously moving around. They took their orders as the waitress came, and they looked at each other again.

"Look at us," Kizuna suddenly said, and Remon looked up at her. Kizuna was grinning. "Look at us, we're being stupid. We're acting like we've just met."

Remon nodded a bit, smiling. However, there was no real meaning to the smile. She just smiled because she felt that it would humor Kizuna. She could tell that it didn't.

"Yes, I noticed that...well, no, I didn't notice it. I suppose I was just nervous."

Kizuna's eyes suddenly had a dangerous twinkle in them. She abandoned her stuff on her side of the booth and sat next to Remon, pressed comfortably into her arm. "Nervous about what...?"

She saw Remon bite her lip gently, looking down at the table. "Well, I suppose I was just nervous...to see you. I mean, we haven't seen each other since...graduation. And...well, since yesterday it's been the only time that..."

"We've been alone," Kizuna finished for her, looking at Remon fondly. "I know."

They looked into each other's eyes across the table, unaware that their friends were looking over their shoulders at their antics. The whole world seemed to stop, in that one moment where they looked at each other...really looked...for the first time. They broke out of the trance when the waitress, who had been standing there watching them for a few long moments, cleared her throat. Remon was the first one to come to, she gasped and looked sheepishly up at the waitress, smiling.

"Yes, we're ready to order now," Remon said, getting the menu. She'd remembered what Kizuna had wanted, which was good, because Kizuna still seemed spacey. Remon finished with the order, and was now aware of the fact that their friends were watching them. She hastily looked back to Kizuna, who was uncannily quiet for someone with her personality.

"Kizuna-chan. Kizuna?" she asked, waving a hand in front of her face. Kizuna just looked at her, and Remon narrowed her eyes.

"You're not upset at me, are you?" Remon asked, frowning a bit.

Kizuna shook her head. "No."

Remon blinked a bit, her eyes still narrowed, then gave Kizuna one of her best smiles. The corners of Kizuna's mouth twitched a bit, and eventually it led into a full-fledged smile.

"You always make me smile, Remon-chan," Kizuna said, a bit above a mutter, but with an uplifted spirit.

"Of course, it's my job," Remon said matter-of-factly, rolling her eyes and breaking herself a piece of bread from the huge loaf that had been set in front of them upon getting to the table. "Bread?" she said, handing the loaf to Kizuna. Kizuna broke off half the loaf and Remon narrowed her eyes.

"Hungry much?" she asked, closing her eyes and eating the food. Kizuna shrugged and tore a piece off, throwing it at Remon.

"Not really," she said, grinning. Remon sighed and narrowed her eyes again, throwing the piece back, only to have it thrown back at her.

"You're so childish," Remon said, and Kizuna grinned proudly. Their food came in due time, and the both of them seemed to be in a more cheerful mood after eating and drinking their own bottle of Chiyo's sake. Kizuna seemed to be the most affected by the alcohol, however. She walked with a swagger, her hands in her pockets, chuckling at the most random things. Remon remained more sober, however she too found herself grinning and laughing at totally irrelevant things. Even so, Remon was able to pull them both out of it as soon as the group made it back to Chikaru and Shion's house. The rest were sleeping over, and Remon was able to get her and Kizuna some water to calm themselves down.

"Sorry about that," Kizuna said, sipping her ice-cold water. She was normal now, but her hands trembled a bit as she held her glass. Remon seemed highly tired and lay her head gently on Kizuna's lap holding her own water. Kizuna gently played with her hair.

"It's nothing," Remon replied to Kizuna's apology, and they remained sitting on the couch together for what seemed like an endless time. They weren't even aware of what the rest of their friends were doing at the time. They were just with each other, that was what mattered.

--

It was in the middle of the night...well, more like early in the morning, when Kizuna got an idea. She grinned and shook Remon, who was sleeping like a baby. She whimpered and moved around, going back to sleep.

"Remon. Wake up, damn you," Kizuna whispered, shaking her more. Remon groggily opened her eyes, rubbing them out of exhaustion.

"What?" she asked, a slight edge of irritation in her voice.

"Get some clothes on. Or wear your pajamas. Or go commando," Kizuna said, an evil twinkle in her eyes as she said the last suggestion. "We're going out."

"Where?" Remon said, placing on some shoes and getting her coat. There was no way she was going anywhere in commando with Kizuna...at least not now. Kizuna did not answer, just smiled that scheming smile. It gave Remon the chills, it was apparent that Kizuna had something up her sleeve.

They made their way to Chikaru and Shion's garage, since they were too scared to open and close the door in the living room. They scrambled out of the small window and hurried to Kizuna's jeep. Kizuna revved up the engine and sped off down the road, away from the city to the ocean. Remon remained quiet, though stared curiously at Kizuna. _Is this her idea of a romantic getaway?_

_Apparently._ Once the Jeep finally stopped, they were at the oceanside, the moon made the water in the ocean sparkle with light. Kizuna jumped out of the Jeep, helping Remon out herself, and held a bottle of tea with her as they both walked to the shore, their shoes feeling soft against the sand.

"I thought we could get away and talk for a while," Kizuna said as they both sat down, right to where the tide stopped and floated back down to sea.

"Good idea," Remon said as she took the bottle of tea from Kizuna, sipping the herbal tea. "I was getting tired of walking in on Chikaru and Shion all the time."

"Well, they do live there," Kizuna said, and made a popping noise with her tongue. Remon laughed at her. "It's natural for them I suppose. But they set a bad example."

"It influences our nice little harem, though," Remon said, grinning. "I mean, look how Chiyo and Kagome turned out."

Kizuna nodded, agreeing with her. It seemed as though their little Lulim harem had finally grown up. They had moved onto bigger and better things. And it was ironic that Remon and Kizuna were the only two in the harem who weren't hooked up...Yet, Kizuna thought, grinning to herself. She looke to Remon and stood up, taking her hand.

"Let's go into the water. We can hunt for clams or something," she said, and pulled her into the water. She felt Remon shiver a bit at the touch of the water at their feet.

"Will we be able to see anything at night?" she said, looking around and keeping a firm grip on Kizuna's hand.

"The hell if I know," Kizuna contemplated, moving deeper into the water until they were knee-deep. "We can always pretend we're on a boat, though. Sailing the seven seas with fish nets and catching buckets of fish."

Remon giggled a bit and caught Kizuna's foot on her's, making them both fall right into the water. After several minutes of giggling and wrestling around, they went back to shore, shivering. Kizuna looked contempt, flicking her hair at Remon, who giggled.

"Don't you think Shion and Chikaru will ask why we're all wet?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at Kizuna. There was no doubt in her mind that they would not approve of two soaking-wet girls walking into the house.

Kizuna thought for a minute, her face twisting into a look of concentration. "We could always just explain. Or we can wait to dry. I don't quite fancy getting water all inside my Jeep."

"So I suppose we'll just wait to dry, then."

"I suppose so."

After an hour and a half, however, they remained pretty much soaked. Kizuna and Remon gave each other a fearful look...they were going to have to face Chikaru and Shion whether they liked it or not. Kizuna took Remon's hand and led her back to the Jeep, the ride was highly uncomfortable because of their clothes sticking to their skin.

They made it to Chikaru and Shion's house in record time, scurrying through the secret window in the garage and finally making it into the house, quietly. They tip-toed to their room and started to change into pajamas, all the while trying to make as little noise as possible. Kizuna gently sat on their bed, turning slightly red as she watched Remon finish dressing.

"Do you think they're awake?" Kizuna asked, barely above a whisper. Remon sighed and sat on the bed next to Kizuna, rubbing her arm.

"I don't know. It's hard to tell without going up there and..."

"Are you kidding me!" Kizuna said, her mouth open. "I'm not going up there! That's like...committing suicide!"

"I know..." Remon said, patting Kizuna's shoulder gently. "But we're going to have to deal with it sometime. Let's just say we went to get water..."

"At the same time? That's a bit suspicious, don't you think? You never had good plans, Remon-chan," Kizuna said, smirking, and Remon slapped her arm, dragging her up by the shoulder.

"Come on. If I'm doing this, you're doing this with me."

"It's a budding _death wish_..." Kizuna sang softly as Remon pulled her by the shoulder into the living room. As far as they could tell, no one was up there and it was completely dark. Both Kizuna and Remon let out a sigh of relief, looking at each other through the darkness, grinning. However, the light suddenly turned on, illuminating the kitchen and exposing the figures of Chikaru and Shion, both sitting in a chair at the table, their arms and legs crossed. Remon squealed and fell over, and Kizuna stood their, her breathing choppy and uneven.

"Hello ladies," Shion said, her voice irritated, but slightly amused. Even though Chikaru was in the same position as Shion, she still had her usual, kindly air about her. It made the situation much more tolerable.

"Shion-sama!" Kizuna said, trying not to sound nervous and laughing a bit. "Hey, what are you two doing up?"

"Just wondering where you two were."

Remon and Kizuna looked at each other sheepishly."Uh...we...didn't go anywhere..." Remon tried to say, stumbling over her words. Shion continued to glare.

"Bull crap. We heard Kizuna's car leaving the house about two hours ago. We know you two went somewhere. So how come you didn't tell us?"

"We...we didn't think..." Kizuna said softly. She knew this was a bad idea as soon as the last word left her lips.

"'We didn't think', 'I forgot', 'We didn't know we were supposed to do that,', 'We're too young to have responsibilities', that's all we ever hear from you two!" Shion said, her voice stern and mother-like. It caused Kizuna and Remon to shrink together against the wall. "Don't you know that you two won't be teenagers anymore by next year? You have to learn not to make excuses for your actions and tell the truth. You're not little kids anymore, don't you realize that by now?"

"Shion-kun..." Chikaru said softly, placing a hand on Shion's shoulder as she glared at the two girls. "Don't blame them...you're right, they're not children. They shouldn't need anyone to keep tabs on them, you know that."

"I know! But they can't be running off when their parents are trusting us to watch them! I don't want to have to sign any paperwork, you know. And I don't want people calling child services on us, if you catch my drift. So please..." Shion said, her voice softening at the look Chikaru gave her, "make sure you tell us when you're going out, alright?"

Kizuna and Remon nodded, grinning and giving Shion the "V" sign. They weren't sure if they meant "peace" or "victory" as they walked out of the kitchen into the hallway. However, as they over-heard Shion complaining to Chikaru how she had nearly gotten them in her grasp, they were sure that their "V" sign meant "victory".


	4. Let's Do The Time Warp!

I'm still wondering why the word processing software that I use says that "blonde" is spelled incorrectly...

**Chapter 3: Let's Do the Time Warp!**

With nothing to do the next day and no school, Kizuna and Remon laid out two Dance Dance Revolution mats out a few feet away from the T.V. and popped in DDR Max.

Shion and Chikaru sat on the couch, watching the two girls practically destroy the DDR mats, holding each other. Chikaru was falling asleep again, not being much of a morning person, and Shion was gently running her fingers through her hair.

"You guys are always doing things together," Shion said, as Kizuna and Remon lay sprawled on the floor after three rounds of exhausting DDR. "Honestly."

"Well," Kizuna said as they started to go to the kitchen for water, and she punched Remon's arm. "Remon-chan is my most important partner. I'm glad that Chikaru-oneesama introduced us those many years ago. I mean, what would I be without her around?"

"A completely dull person," Remon said, grinning and sipping at her water. Kizuna shook her head and rolled her eyes, sighing.

"There's nothing to do around here," Kizuna suddenly complained, throwing herself on the unoccupied couch in the living room, making room so Remon could plop down next to her. "Your house is so boring, Shion-sama."

"Oh, well _excuse_ me," Shion said, narrowing her eyes. "But it's not my fault. If you want more fun, go do something illegal and get thrown in jail. Have a laugh or two."

Kizuna and Remon looked at each other, and grinned. "That sounds like a laugh, actually. Good idea, Shion-sama," Kizuna said, and stood up.

"Yeah, we'll see you two later. Might want to keep the phone on high volume," Remon said, winking and following Kizuna outside. Shion blinked, looking baffled, and shouted after them as they closed the door.

"Wait, wait! I was only joking! Don't go do anything stupid!" Shion seemed to be in slight hysterics, but what she didn't realize was that Remon and Kizuna were outside the front door, pressing their ears to the door and listening in. Kizuna grinned and took out her cellphone.

"How about we take it further?" she said, pressing the speed dial for Shion and Chikaru's home phone. Remon rolled her eyes.

"Don't they have both of our numbers recorded in their Caller ID?" she asked matter-of-factly, crossing her arms as the phone rang. Kizuna waved her hand, and spoke into the phone with a macho-man security guard accent.

"Excuse me, but we've been calling around the neighborhood to find the parents of Kizuna Hyuuga and Remon Natsume, but we haven't been able to contact the parents. Do you know anything about these two?"

As Shion went into a stammered explanation, Remon rolled her eyes and slapped Kizuna in the arm. Kizuna let out a short squeak into the phone, and Shion suddenly stopped.

"Wait, who is this? Are you sure you're the police?"

Remon and Kizuna looked at each other gravely. "April Fools?" Kizuna said, grinning.

"DO YOU KNOW HOW BADLY I'M GOING TO KILL YOU TWO?!" Shion's voice yelled at them, making Kizuna jump a bit.

"Hey, it's your fault for telling us to do something illegal," Remon said into the phone, pulling it away from Kizuna's ear.

"Yeah, it's all your fault, you know," Kizuna said, and she closed the phone and looked to Remon. "Should we start running?"

Remon nodded, standing up from the ground, Kizuna following her. "I think that would be a good idea. Let's go before the Wicked Witch From the West beats us both into submission with her broomstick."

"We should flatten the tires on that broomstick!" Kizuna exclaimed as the two of them scurried off around the house, trying to avoid Shion at all costs. There was, however, a pipe that they could scale to get to their bedroom window and into the house without detection. The only thing was that it caused a lot of clanking noises, and Remon was deathly afraid of heights. They both ended up sitting in the backyard, hiding behind a large bush, huddled together. There was no sign of Shion coming after them yet, but both girls were too frightened to move anywhere away from the bush, or speak a word. They remained there for a few minutes, until they were sure they could hear no sign of Shion, and then Kizuna stood up, making Remon stay on the ground for protection.

"I don't see Shion-sama anywhere...and I don't hear her at all," Kizuna said, listening closely. The house seemed to be quiet, which was foreboding. She knew Chikaru and Shion were still in there. So why was it so quiet?

Remon looked around the bush, remaining crouched down. "Me either. Think we should chance going through the back door?"

"It's a chance we have to be willing to take," Kizuna said, and Remon stood up next to her. They nodded at each other, then slowly advanced to the sliding glass door that led to the kitchen. Kizuna took out one of her credit cards from her wallet, and slid it in between the door and the wall. The lock clicked open, and they were able to open the door and scurry inside. Chikaru, they automatically saw, was not on the couch anymore.

"She must be roaming around the house with Shion-sama," Kizuna whispered.

Remon nodded. "Shion-sama doesn't seem to like us very much today, does she?"

"Apparently not," Kizuna said under her breath, grinning. "Oh well. Suits herself if she wants to keep that stick up her ass. Might be hard for her to sit down, though. At least without making a horrid face. Come on, let's try to get to our room without detection..."

After Remon subsided from her sudden fit of giggles, Kizuna led her off by the arm towards their room, trying not to make so much noise with their shoes.

"I wish you didn't wear those metal-plated tennis shoes, Kizuna-chan," Remon whispered fiercely, as they walked down the hallways. "They're out of style anyway."

"That's only because no one wears them anymore," Kizuna whispered back, and she randomly opened a door and threw Remon into a dark room, closing and locking the door.

"Are we in the bathroom?" Remon asked, trying to make herself room in the small area. Kizuna blinked, holding out her hands until she touched something, and she nodded.

"Seems like it. Nice hiding place, huh?"

"Yeah, two teenage girls locked in a dark bathroom alone..."

"Imagine the possibilities," Kizuna said, smirking. Though Remon couldn't see her smirk through the dark, she could tell by her tone of voice.

"Just keep your hands to yourself, we're supposed to be hiding." Kizuna rolled her eyes and smirked.

"Yes, Mistress Remon. I will not attempt to do anything dirty in here, under the specific circumstances we happen to be in. I believe that sex would be very tense if we were to do it whilst under surveillance."

"It most certainly would," Remon said, agreeing with her. "And anyway, what would Shion say if she saw us doing something like that?"

"'Chikaru, get the video camera!'"

"Very funny," Remon said, narrowing her eyes. "Did you pick up your fiendish ways from Kiyashiki-sensei and Kenjou-sensei?"

"If anyone did, you would, them being your 'sensei' and all that."

"You were the one who had a huge crush on Kiyashiki-sensei."

"Did not!"

"Oh don't lie like that," Remon said, smirking. "I can openly say that I have a crush on Kenjou-sensei." Kizuna snickered and Remon rolled her eyes.

"I used to have a crush on Kiyashiki-san, and Chikaru-oneesama at one point," Kizuna admitted, smiling sheepishly. "But I've got my heart set on another."

Remon didn't ask who, so Kizuna didn't say anything else. After a few long minutes, maybe half an hour of sitting there in silence, Kizuna opened the door and looked around.

"Checkmate," Kizuna said, and apparently that meant the coast was clear, and the two of them walked to their room again, closing and locking the door. They both let out a sigh of relief.

"That was terribly frightening," Remon said, throwing herself on the bed. Kizuna threw herself next to her, nodding and closing her eyes.

"You're telling me. I could barely think straight. My heart felt like it was suffocating itself the whole time. It was like last night times a million."

Remon laughed a bit, and Kizuna beamed at her. "We're going to have to face her sooner or later, you know that right?" Remon stated, matter-of-factly.

Kizuna groaned and hid her face in her pillow. "I know, I know. I just don't want to face Shion when she's so frustrated with us. I swear, she's not even in her cycle right now and she bitches at us like crazy."

"Because we're still teenagers," Remon said, sighing. "Even though we're nineteen. Once we become of age, she might stop bothering us."

"_Might_."

"She only picks on us and pushes us around because she categorizes us as children," Remon said. "She thinks we need to be put in line, shown how to have responsibilities."

"Well, if one thing's for sure," Kizuna said, "it's the fact that we have no idea how to tackle things responsibly."

"That might be true," Remon said, looking to Kizuna. "But we're old enough to know that we need to start trying to."

"You really are growing up," Kizuna said, in an almost baffled tone, and Remon laughed.

"At least one of us is."

Kizuna pounced on Remon, getting ready to smother her with a pillow, until they heard the door open. They both looked around and saw Shion and Chikaru standing there.

"A-ha! We found--oh, hey! Lock the door when you're about to do that!" Shion said, turning away. Kizuna laughed and Remon blushed.

"We're not doing anything, Shion-sama. Look, we're fully clothed. Show her your hands, Remon," she said, and Remon held up her hands in front of her.

"Well, if you're going to smother each other, go right ahead. I'm making the funeral arrangements," Shion said, grinning evilly at the two.

"Make sure they play 'I've Been Working On the Railroad' on the organ when we're getting buried. And don't cremate us, I don't like the smell of ashes, it's like burnt hair times ten," Kizuna said, grinning numerously, and Remon smirked and nodded in agreement.. Shion rolled her eyes.

"You think everything is a game, don't you?"

"According to the Holy Bible of Kizuna, life is just a game that only the best players can win. The losers are poor and have no friends. That's life, Shion-sama," Kizuna said, shrugging and orienting herself on the bed so that she wasn't crushing Remon anymore, Remon sitting next to her. "You need to lighten up, Shion. A bit of hanging out should do the trick! Come on, Remon, let's invite some people over."

Remon nodded and ran down the stairs with Kizuna, sliding on the railings of the stairs to avoid getting tripped. They were at the phone in about five seconds, with Shion and Chikaru following slowly.

"Hey, hey! I didn't approve of you inviting anyone over! This isn't your house, you know!" Shion called, her face flushed in slight anger. Chikaru placed a calming hand on her shoulder, grinning softly.

"Shion, let them have some fun."

"B-but Chikaru..."

"Shh," Chikaru retorted, placing a finger over her wife's lips. "They're right, you know. You need to loosen up, hun."

Shion crossed her arms and retained her grumpy attitude as she watched Remon and Kizuna quickly attacking the phone book for people's numbers. With the excitement, Shion guessed that they'd forgotten how to use Speed Dial on a cellphone. After hanging up the phone for the last time, Kizuna and Remon promptly left the kitchen, Kizuna randomly breaking into a chorus of "A Pirate's Life For Me." Shion watched them for a moment, then suddenly blinked. "Wait! How many people did you invite over?!"

They didn't even look around, just waved at her. "Just a few people, don't worry about it, Shion-sama!" Remon said. But Shion saw the grin on her face, almost exactly like Kizuna's when she hatched a scheme. Shion looked to Chikaru and sighed.

"I think we should be afraid. _Very_ afraid."

Chikaru giggled. "It is Kizuna and Remon, after all."

--

Everyone started showing up a few hours later. The usual crew, consisting of Kagome, Chiyo, Yaya and Tsubomi, all came together. Surprisingly, Yaya refrained from making a dramatic entrance and proceeded to sprawl herself on the couch, ignoring Tsubomi's scolding about bad manners. Then along came Nagisa and Shizuma, Miyuki and Tamao, and lastly Kaname and Momomi, whom didn't seem to want to be there but came upon request. Shion proceeded to stay as far away from them as humanly possible.

"_Why_ do we have to be here?" Kaname asked, scowling as she watched the former Astrea Hill gang converse and walk through the whole house. Shion scoffed.

"For once, I have to agree with Kaname. _Why_ do they have to be here?"

Kaname glared at her and Shion grinned triumphantly. Kizuna sighed and walked between them.

"Make love, not war. Which I'm sure you both will be doing once this is over, but I won't go into any details, eh?" Kizuna said, grinning and causing both Shion and Kaname to turn slightly red. Momomi seemed to be engulfed in watching whatever was on TV and was not paying the least bit attention to them. Chikaru, who was watching the entire scene from the couch, grinned.

_As usual, nothing has changed from our school days. Kaname is bugging Shion, Momomi is completely oblivious, Kizuna and Remon are wreaking havoc, Yaya and Tsubomi are arguing about something stupid, Kagome and Chiyo are minding their own business, Nagisa and Shizuma are openly announcing their love, and Tamao and Miyuki are glaring at them. All is as though no time has passed at all. Nothing has changed. It suddenly makes me wish we were all back at Astrea Hill..._

Shion suddenly sat next to her and sank into her arms. "Chikaru, what's up?"

"I was just thinking," Chikaru said, running her hands lightly through Shion's blonde hair.

"About what?"

"Nothing to be concerned about," Chikaru said, that smile still on her face.

"Then you should have no problem telling me," Shion said, looking up at her lover and smirking. "Or are you just dodging the question because you don't want me to know you're thinking seriously for once?"

Chikaru blinked a bit, her face still bright, and she pushed Shion onto the couch and sat on her. "Hey! What was that for?!" she heard Shion say, but Chikaru either didn't hear her or pretended not to. Kagome and Chiyo, whom had witnessed the whole ordeal, looked concerned.

"Chikaru-neesama, won't Shion-oneesama get suffocated by your...um..." Kagome said softly, apparently too embarrassed to complete the sentence. Chikaru gave her an uncharacteristically evil-but-sweet smile.

"Shion-oneesama will be just fine, Kagome-chan. Go ahead about your business."

Kagome gave Shion another concerned look, then took Chiyo's arm and dragged her off to where Kizuna and Remon were having an enlightened conversation about foam soap. After joining into the conversation for a few minutes, Kizuna climbed onto the coffee table with a square object in her hand.

"Attention, everyone!" she called, and everyone fell silent. "I present to you: Rocky Horror Picture Show!"

There was a chorus of cheers that echoed through the whole house. Apparently hardly anyone in the group could turn down a good run of Rocky Horror. Shion, who had freed herself from Chikaru's hold, didn't seem to care less.

"Get off the coffee table, Kizuna-chan! We paid money for that!"

Kizuna grinned and jumped off of the table, rolling away on the floor and ending up at Remon's feet. Remon rolled her eyes and took the DVD away from her, putting it into the DVD player and sitting on the floor with Kizuna curled up next to her. As the others started to sit on the floor as well, only a few people continued to sit on the couches. Momomi, who was sitting on the floor, pouted as she tried to get Kaname to sit with her.

"Kaname! Come sit on the floor!"

Kaname crossed her arms. "But I don't _want_ to..." She said this in an almost childish manner, at which Momomi grinned and advanced on her, jumping onto the couch. On the floor, Kizuna and Remon watched them.

"Kaname...do it..."

"But _why_?" Kaname said, again her tone annoyed. Momomi grinned and pounced on her, tickling her sides, making Kaname twitch and squirm away awkardly. "Stop it!"

"Then sit on the floor!"

"Fine, fine! Just let go!"

Momomi grinned and continued to a few moments, just to annoy Kaname and to watch her squirm. Before long, they were both on the floor, Kaname had her arms crossed and Momomi forced one of her arms to latch onto her's. Remon, who was poised with the remote on play, sighed.

"Are you two finished?" she asked. They nodded sheepishly, and Remon started up the movie. There was much laughter and many outbreaks of song, even Kaname seemed to enjoy herself. However, Kizuna stopped at the infamous Time Warp scene to look at her friends, grinning. A few people complained, but Yaya grinned back.

"I know what Kizuna is thinking," she said, looking to the group at large and nodding. "Time Warp line!"

"Alright! Good thinking, Kizuna-chan!" Remon said, being the first one to jump up over to Kizuna. Kizuna grinned at her.

"You're all joining in, I don't care about your reputation, and you shouldn't either. This is about fun! So stop being such a stick in the mud and join us, Shion-sama!"

Shion crossed her arms defiantly. "There's no way I'm participating in a stupid dance." Chikaru, however, took the idea to heart and went to join them, leaving Shion pouting on the couch. "Aw, come on, Chikaru!"

"What? I want to dance! You should join, Shion!" Chikaru said, grinning brightly at her. Shion sighed, apparently she couldn't say no to that face, and went to go stand with her lover. Everyone had decided except for Kaname, who was still sitting on the floor. Momomi put her hands on her hips and glared impatiently at Kaname, who looked up at her, almost innocently.

"Kaname..."

"Momomi, I already watched the movie on the floor with you, and now you're asking me to dance in a big line with a bunch of people, MOST of whom I don't generally like?!" she complained, looking to Shion and grinning. Shion ignored her. "I'm sorry, but this is on the list of the "things in my life that I will never do", right up there with eating anchovies."

"Last time I checked, you still need to update that list," Momomi said, grinning, and Kaname ignored the whispering Remon saying 'She actually has a list?', while Kizuna smirked. "Come on, Kaname! I promise never to ask you to dance in a big line again!"

Kaname crossed her arms, gazing up at her determined lover. Momomi sighed a bit, placing her thumb and index finger to her temples, thinking. Then she snapped her fingers.

"Kaname, you better do it or no sex for the rest of the week."

Kaname's facial expression abruptly fell. The rest of the women in the room sympathized, it was one of the worst punishments Momomi could think of for Kaname. In barely a second, Kaname was standing next to her lover in the Time Warp line, shaking her head. Kizuna looked around, seeing all of her friends in two almost-equal lines, then grinned and un-paused the TV.

"Get ready, everyone!" Kizuna said, and before they knew it, everyone in the room broke into dance, besides Chiyo who decided to video-tape at the last minute. Hikari and Amane were unfortunate to appear in the room in the middle of the dance, looking at each other with a confused expression on either face. After everyone fell to the floor, they continued to watch the movie as though nothing happened, though there was still a sort of giddy-ness in the air. By the end of the movie, it was already getting late.

"Hey, hey! Does anyone want to spend the night?" Kizuna asked. Remon forced Kagome and Chiyo, of course, who were tentatively thinking. Hikari and Amane turned down the offer, saying that they had other business to attend to. Nagisa and Shizuma also left.

"We'll be glad to!" Yaya said, grinning as she planted herself on one of the couches, while Tsubomi sat next to her with a magazine.

"Right! That's four people. Kaname, Momomi?" Chikaru said, looking over to them. Momomi looked as though she were considering, but Kaname shook her head.

"Why not?" Momomi said, and Kaname explained under her breath so the others wouldn't hear. Momomi's face turned exceedingly more red in the space of a few seconds, then nodded. She grinned at the others, who had guessed what they were talking about by now. "Uh...sorry. Kaname and I have a previous engagement."

"Besides," Kaname said, pointing at Shion. "I wouldn't be caught dead in the same house with Shion for a whole night."

Shion crossed her arms. "I can say the same thing about you, Kenjou."

Kizuna grinned and looked to Remon, speaking under her breath. "'Previous engagement' meaning bedtime adventures?"

Remon burst into a fit of giggles and Kaname ignored her. Kizuna grinned a bit. "Come on, Kaname. You guys are always off by yourselves, it's about time you started interacting with the people you know, you're not hated, you know."

Kaname looked as though she were going to tell Kizuna off, to say that she had no right to analyze her and her lover's lives, but Chikaru put a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

"Kaname-san, Kizuna-chan is right. You two need a bit more fun in your lives. How about you spend the night?"

Kaname blinked at them, probably surprised that they were being so nice to her, and walked off to Momomi's side again, where they engaged in a whispered conversation. They both turned around after a few seconds, then they both opened their mouths.

"We'd love to," Momomi said, grinning before Kaname could respond. Kaname looked incredulous.

"I thought you said we agreed not to..." she said, crossing her arms, and Momomi rolled her eyes.

"I changed my mind."

The rest of the friends looked at each other, then shrugged. The rest of the night was spent watching TV, playing video games and reminiscing on old times. When it was time for sleep, the guests slept on the sleeping bags that Chikaru and Shion provided, and Remon and Kizuna went to spend the night in the 'guest' room, which they had mutually adopted as their own. They spent many hours looking up at the ceiling, neither one was brave enough to speak. This always happened, though. A few hours of silence, then Kizuna or Remon would say something, then they would be in conversation through most of the night. The silence seemed a bit longer than usual this time.

Remon looked to Kizuna through the darkness. Though she couldn't see her at all, she could see the outline and feel the presence of her. Of course, she knew she was laying right beside her, because they would start kicking each other or something if they were bored enough. They never really grew out of their childish habits, and it made her think.

"Kizuna-chan?" she asked quietly through the silence. She felt Kizuna squirm next to her, apparently she was moving around so that she could see her as well.

"Yes, Natsume-san?"

"People at my job call me that," Remon said, slightly irritated, and Kizuna giggled heartfully.

"What is it, Remon-chan?"

"Do you think that...well...I dunno...that Shion-sama might be right about us? That we're overly-childish? Maybe it's time that we grow up...I mean we're in college now, I have a job and I'm taking up most of my vacation time to be here."

It made Kizuna feel slightly bad when Remon put it that way. She was blowing off valuable work time to visit them, and it would just be harder on Remon once she returned home to continue working and studying. Kizuna sighed and closed her eyes.

"I really don't know. Shion-sama is Shion-sama, she's always telling us to grow up."

"Now that I really think about it..." said Remon's soft voice, tainted with the urge to sleep. But this was an important conversation, one of the few important conversations they'd ever had. And if Kizuna knew Remon as well as she thought she did, she knew that Remon was thinking the same thing she was, and that they were both eager to continue on with it. "Now that I really think about, it, Kizuna-chan, we really don't act our ages at all."

Kizuna was blank for a moment, her mind struggling to process thoughts while trying to fight the beckoning sleep that was threatening to take her over. She slipped back in reality long enough to come up with a reply, but by the time she started to speak, Remon had already fallen asleep. It gave Kizuna a few minutes to think about what Remon said, the silence surrounding them louder than she'd ever heard it, and she finally fell asleep, wondering what the next day would bring.


End file.
